The Reality of Reality Shows

This edition of the newsletter is all about the year that was and one that will be.?

Spotlight Story

The next year will be action-packed for the Creator Economy. Starting with the TikTok-US saga that’ll frontload within the month of January itself and promises to keep us engaged for a few months to come.?

Where this dramatic saga will land is anyone's guess, there’s a school of thought that feels that TikTok is here to stay because of the monies riding on it - Creators and Small businesses will likely lose an estimated $1.3 billion in revenue within the first month itself, with a broader potential impact of $24 billion to the US economy. TikTok is a very significant player in the US, with one-third of the country's population using TikTok and some creators earning more than 75% of their revenues on the platform. The recent Black Friday sales saw TikTok shop grossing over $100 million dollars, with its e-commerce goal of $17.5 billion in US sales for 2024. Sure, these are big numbers! And, well eventually it all boils down to the bank!?

Having said this, it’s worthwhile to remember that ‘one man’s loss is another man’s gain’. In this case, there’s a lot to gain for the homegrown American favorites, the likes of Google, Snap, Meta, and others if TikTok were to disappear with all the other immigrants ;) TikTok’s exit from the US also checks in on safeguarding the US privacy narrative too.?

Eventually, both are strong arguments and it is anyone's guess on what the future might hold.?

TikTok’s exit or not, it is certain that eventually it's the Creators that are caught in the crossfire.?

During a recent podcast with Jim Louderback , he drew an analogy to the platforms being ‘rented land’ - that has stuck with me. The ultimate north star for creators should be to ‘own their audiences’.?

?Jim Louderback drew an analogy to the platforms being ‘rented land’—that has stuck with me. The ultimate north star for creators should be to ‘own their audiences’.?

Consider this free newsletter that I wrote and you are reading on LinkedIn. If LinkedIn were to change its discoverability algorithms, start charging subscription fees, or worse still, sunset its newsletter product, that’d be the end of the road for this weekly newsletter and our relationship here. However, if we had a direct connection - emails, phone numbers, subscriptions, etc.- it would take our relationship beyond this rented land.?

You may have guessed by now, in 2025, this will be my key priority! ;)?

Research Reports

Not really a research report, but lately my LinkedIn feed has been flooded with Top Creator Rankings, across geographies, genres, platforms, countries, etc from Favikon. In case, you’d like to have a go at these rankings from a single source of truth - I got your back! Don't forget to experiment with the filters.?

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Global Happenings

• While we are waiting to see what unfolds in the US, in a surprising development, Albania went ahead and imposed a one-year ban on TikTok. With this ban, Albania joins ranks with a growing list of countries banning TikTok?
• India is one of the most densely creator-populated countries with more than 140 million creators. Alike.io,? Plixxo, Mompresso, and HubHopper studio are riding the creator economy wave here.?
• Staying the course in India, Prime Minister Modi lauded the role of the Indian Creator Economy in fuelling India’s $5 trillion vision. Here are Pratishtha Bagai 's very apt Top 10 Trends for the Indian Creator Economy?
• The countdown to the upcoming 1 Billion Follower Summit is only getting louder?
• Some love it and some love to hate it - the Beast Games on Amazon Prime have already polarized audiences. I’m not surprised by the strong reactions the games are eliciting. 1000 creators are competing for the grand prize of $5 million. Given that each contestant brings their dedicated fanbase to the show, eliminations perceived as unfair or disrespectful have triggered passionate responses from viewers.- I can see where the strong reactions come from. However, the show will run till Feb 2025 and it feels that the reviews will get better with time as the pyramid sharpens.?

I’m not a huge fan of Reality Shows, mainly because these shows feed on controversies and primal survival human emotions (is my disdain quite clear already?) For anyone who enjoys the reality of the reality shows - there is enough of that in the Beast Games

My Corner

I type this edition while en route from Delhi to Phuket. Headed to Thailand for the holidays, but mainly to Dive, Hike, and get myself whipped (hopefully not too hard) doing Muay Thai. Most importantly, I hope to spend a few days reflecting on the year gone by and be excited about welcoming the New Year with renewed hope and promise.?

On that note, here’s wishing you a very Happy and Prosperous New Year 2025 - I wish you the very best and hope that this is your best year ever!! :)